He's never where he should be
by Earline Nathaly
Summary: And with that, Hiccup was the main reason Astrid got distracted during training, went more frequently than normal to the forge and felt more emotions than the socially accepted for Vikings.


Summary: And with that, Hiccup was the main reason Astrid got distracted during training, went more frequently than normal to the forge and felt more emotions than the socially accepted for Vikings.

Well, I want to thank Ravelia Tamor to help me with the translation, because my first leanguage is NOT english, so if you find any mistake, please I'd be very happy if you let me know.

–

–

–

Everything started when, without really planning it, the small group was formed, and it wouldn't brake even when they grew up. They were five and six years old when that happened and their parents had to put them together to teach them how to read, write, add and subtract. The basic stuff a Viking should learn so they wouldn't get tricked when doing business.

Gobber, with his missing hand, didn't seem the best suitable person to teach them, but he was the default teacher whenever the youngest should learn something that had to be learned, and that was the reason the Thorston twins – Ruffnut and Tuffnut – Snotlout, Fishlegs, Astrid and Hiccup were gathered in the Great Hall at that moment, with paper and coal on the table, and hanging feet on the chairs.

Young Astrid was inconforme with this. She didn't like the idea of learning stuff where everyone could see her fail. Even though, her mother didn't give her other option, so she had to do it anyways. When her mother saw her frown, she added: "Besides, you'd do good to check out your partners. Among them is probably your future husband."

Future husband? No, thank you. Astrid will be busy being the best Viking Berk has ever seen. She wouldn't have time for husbands. And right now, she was busy _learning_ how to be the best, so, why bother watching her classmates?

However, once the seed of the curiosity was planted, she couldn't help but watch.

Ruffnut and Tuffnut were always fighting, and today was no exception. They took the branches with the tied coal they used for writing and started scrawling themselves in the face, arms, and any part of their bodies they could reach while laughing like maniacs.

Fishlegs was clearly impatient to start, because he was also scrawling, with the enthusiasm painted on his face, on the sheets of paper he had in front of him even before Gobber had time to give instructions.

Then, there it was Snotlout, who like every six-year old boy, wanted to be like his father, Spitelout, whom at the same time, was the second in command of Stoick The Vast, Hiccup's father. It's not really necessary to say that Snotlout spent all his day following Hiccup no matter where he went, trying to imitate his father, who followed the chief all day.

Only a few times Astrid hadn't seen them together; they were cousins, after all. And even though Hiccup got Snotlout in trouble more often than not, Stoick encouraged the kids to spend time together with the hope some of the vikingness Snotlout was already showing would stick to Hiccup.

Hiccup, in the other hand, was always distracted, just like now. He still hadn't sit down and was exploring the corners looking for something on the floor. Gobber entered at that moment and Hiccup ran to take a sit. He sat beside Astrid.

The afternoon was slow and soon everyone was bored. After two long hours of failed attempts by the children and a lot of exasperation by Gobber, the only ones that were still trying were Fishlegs, Hiccup and Astrid.

"Why are you using your left hand?" Astrid finally asked him.

"I don't know. I always use more my left hand than my right one."

Astrid frowned. It was weird. It was the first time she saw a person that used more their left hand than the right hand.

And with that, Hiccup was the inattentive boy that hunted trolls in the corners and wrote with his left hand.

–

Everything continued when they were nine and Snotlout decided his cousin wasn't going to be a good leader and quitted being Hiccup follower to be his personal bully. When he discovered the twins were on his side, Hiccup had no escape.

"Snotlout!" shouted Astrid turning around the corner when she saw the trio laughing at Hiccup, who was in the ground, covered in dirt and scrapes. Fishlegs was watching the whole thing standing from a safe distance without daring to say a word.

"Snotlout!" she repeated reaching him in two long steps. "I challenge you to a fight!"

"A fight? It wouldn't be fair for you. Besides, my dad says I shouldn't hit girls."

Astrid clenched her fists. Behind her, Hiccup stood up and stepped aside wisely.

"Fight. Me" she hissed. And then, she had an idea. "Or are you a coward?"

"A coward? Me? No way!"

And so, they fought. If could call that a fight. In less than 30 seconds, Astrid brought Snotlout down and crushed the sole of her boot against his face. "Tell me I'm a better Viking!" she demanded.

"Alright, alright! You win! You are a better viking!"

Astrid allowed him to stand and then turned to the four other kids that were looking at her with wide eyes.

"Who's next?"

The twins started running like Loki was after them without waiting for Snotlout. Fishlegs ran after them with his, usually rosy cheeks, white with fright. Only Hiccup stood there, watching her without blinking.

"Uh…" What was he supposed to say? 'Thank you'?

But Astrid only smiled – probably very pleased with herself because she just beat a boy twice her size – and left before he could say anything else.

And with that, Hiccup was the quite weak boy who was too kind to stand for himself.

–

When she was twelve, things got complicated. Astrid took a notice of this the day she went to the forge to get the axe her mother gave her sharpened.

Gobber wasn't there, only Hiccup, who was surprised when he saw her cross the door.

"Astrid! Hi, Astrid. Hello there. Welcome, what can I do for you?" he babbled nervously.

"Hey. Can I get this sharpened?" Astrid said showing her axe.

"Yes, of course!" he exclaimed happily while coming from behind a table where he was hammering a dagger. "It will be ready in no time."

Astrid handed him the axe and started to wander around the forge while Hiccup did his job. After a couple of minutes of silence, the young blacksmith decided to give it a shot and try to make a small talk.

"I saw you yesterday. You were training with your father near the cost." He said, "You were using this axe"

"Yeah" she answered carelessly while contemplating a sword that was hanging on the wall. "I finally convinced my father to teach me how to properly fight"

"So… you're gonna be coming often, then." He tried "To get your axe sharpened, I mean"

"Yeah, I guess so." And while she said those words she got a strange feeling in her stomach. It was the feeling she got when she was about to learn a new battle technic. Astrid shook her head and gave her stomach gentle strokes unconsciously, trying to make the feeling disappear.

"And your father took you fishing, right?" she said trying to change the subject. Hiccup snorted.

"Oh, don't remind me. He can spend hours talking about the responsibilities I should assume and about how I am everything I shouldn't be"

"Then, you just should try harder" – it was simple in her head. Hiccup sighed. 'I wish it could be that easy' he thought.

"Ready" he said, showing a perfectly sharpened axe. Astrid left the other weapons aside and went to take hers. It was shinny and ready for cutting.

"Thanks" she said in awe. It was the first time Hiccup got something sharpened for her and he made an excellent job. "It's perfect."

Hiccup smiled at the compliment and Astrid thought he looked cute when he smiled that way. Wait, what did she just think? Cute? That was not how a Viking should be. Hiccup would probably get offended if she ever told him. But she wasn't going to. Never.

Oh, and there it was again that anticipation feeling. This time, it was mixed with nervousness.

Bewildered by the path of thinking her mind took, she quickly search for the coins she kept in the little bag she wore on her skirt and extended them to Hiccup.

"Oh, no. Leave it that way." He said pushing gently the fist she was offering him. "A gift from me to you."

Astrid realized that his hands weren't as mistreated as you would expect from the hands of a blacksmith, and she discovered, to her horror, that she liked the contact.

"Alright…" she doubted "Uh… bye"

And once again, she ran without letting Hiccup say anything else.

And with that, Hiccup was the boy of the gentle touch and shy smile that got Astrid confused. She better stayed away of that.

–

Things went from bad to worse when she turned fifteen, and the awkward feelings didn't go away. In fact, they got stronger and nothing could have prepared Astrid for the whirlwind of emotions that would overwhelm her when dragon training began.

The first emotion was desperation. Despite Astrid have been keeping her distance from Hiccup ever since she was twelve, she couldn't help but feel attracted to him.

Because, yes. Finally she was able to put a name to that exasperating feeling. Fearless Astrid Hofferson liked Hiccup the Useless, nickname the whole Island knew him by.

And it was driving Astrid insane with frustration. It wasn't against Hiccup. It was against what he made her feel. She couldn't stand the fact that it was impossible for her to concentrate during training because he was constantly slinking on her head.

And speaking of training, first day in the arena was brutal. Nobody could have guessed Gobber was going to let a gronkle free just like that.

A gronkle that almost got Hiccup killed.

And here's where the second and third feeling bloomed: fear and relief. The terror she felt when watching the gronkle aim his last shot at the cornered scrawny Viking, and the blessed relief when Gobber – who was closer to Hiccup than her – deviated the shot.

Probably Hiccup would be depressed hammering something in the forge. He always enclosed himself to work when he messed up badly. And it wasn't that Astrid were egocentric, but she had notice Hiccup's mood improved every time she went to the forge.

So, breaking the promise she made with herself about _minimum-contact-with-Hiccup _as possible, she went to pay him a visit with the excuse of her axe in her hand.

But to her surprise, Hiccup wasn't there when she got to the forge. There was only Gobber, grumbling because Hiccup had been gone all day since after the training and was currently skipping his duties at the forge.

On top of that, Gobber didn't give Astrid priority as Hiccup did if there was more work, so Astrid took the opportunity to get out of there with the promise of coming back later when Gobber told her she had to wait to get her axe sharpened.

She looked for Hiccup in the woods, in the training arena, near the beach, in all of Berk, but she couldn't find him.

Then, the anger came. Why was she looking for him in the first place? She was not only betraying herself, but she was also acting like a fool. She stopped searching and, in a bad mood, went to the Great Hall to have something for dinner.

All the other young Vikings were already there, even Gobber, who was questioning them about what they did wrong during training. Astrid sat down and began eating, mentally grumbling.

"Alright, where did Astrid go wrong in the ring today?" asked Gobber. 'Clearly, in worrying about Hiccup, that idiot' she thought. And then, while they discussed where else she went wrong, Hiccup entered the Great Hall, soaked to the bone, – she didn't realize it has started to rain – and with a dejected expression.

Astrid frowned, divided between the persistent preoccupation and the anger.

"Where did Hiccup go wrong?" Gobber continued. Astrid glared at him while he took his food and then walked to the adjacent table, ignoring the mocking remarks of the twins.

"He's never where he should be" she sentenced before looking away. "Thank you, Astrid" said Gobber, ending the conversation.

She sighed. What use was in being angry? The more feelings she kept, the more she got distracted. The sigh left only the kind of peace that preceded the emotional exhaustion. She better be careful now. This state always left her vulnerable until she regained energy after a good night of sleep.

Gobber left after handing them the Book of Dragons, and advising them to read it. The Thorston Twins and Snotlout let go of the idea immediately, while Fishlegs appeared to be really excited about it. He began to share his favorite parts with the others, never realizing they didn't want to hear him. The other three left the hall with Fishlegs after them.

Astrid herself had read her share of the book, in hope of learning how to kill dragons, but the book itself didn't provide of many annihilation techniques. It was limited to classify the beasts and illustrate how deadly their attacks could be.

Maybe if she read it again she could make a technique herself to…

"So, I guess we'll… share?" asked Hiccup appearing suddenly at her side, startling her. "Read it." She answered quickly, pushing the book in his direction and walking away in a hurry.

Astrid head to the door pressing her fists against her ribcage in a vane try to protect herself. Hiccup was babbling something incoherent while staring at the floor, so he didn't notice when Astrid looked back with a troubled expression on her face before leaving, slamming the huge doors.

And with that, Hiccup was the main reason Astrid got distracted during training, went more frequently than normal to the forge and felt more emotions than the socially accepted for Vikings.

–

When she was twenty, Astrid couldn't but laugh at the memory of her denial. Being a teenager came with a lot of drama, apparently.

"I hope you're not laughing at me." Hiccup said from Stormfly's stable door. Astrid looked at him before returning her attention to her dragon's saddle.

"Maybe. You look ridiculous with that suit." She replied, smiling. Hiccup smiled as well after rolling his eyes, and then approached her.

"Once again with that. And here I came to invite you to see what I have accomplished with this ridiculous suit."

Astrid finished with Stormfly's saddle and turned to Hiccup. He took one of her hands in his and started to caressing her fingers.

"Are you gonna brag about how you can jump off of your dragon without killing yourself?"

"Most likely"

"Are you gonna teach me how to do it too?"

"If you want me to"

"Are we gonna get lost for hours on one of the islands with equally ridiculous name as your suit after that?"

"Definitely"

Both of them shot a devious smile at each other. Hiccup leaned. Astrid stood on her tiptoes. And their lips met.

"So, what are we doing still here?"

And so, Astrid mounted Stormfly and Hiccup mounted Toothless, which was waiting outside the stable, and nobody in Berk knew of them until the nightfall.

And with that, Hiccup was the most different Viking Berk has ever seen, and Astrid had discovered that because of that, he was perfect for her.

Hiccup, on the other hand, always had known Astrid was the best Viking that ever existed, and because of that, she was perfect for him.

It was only a matter of time for both halves to fit together. Perfectly.


End file.
